"No, wait a minute!" Estoria hurriedly stopped him, but she didn't know how to react in a situation like this, as it felt both unfamiliar and familiar to her.
If it had been Estoria wanting to end her own life, she wouldn't try to stop herself. However, since it was not her but a kid she had just named, she wanted the kid to live.
"Why are you stopping me?" Faye asked, confused by her silence.
"No, I... Why are you trying to do this?" Estoria asked with her head down.
"Hmm? Do I have to explain? Let's just say there really isn't a reason for a person like me to exist anymore," Faye said without any emotion behind his words.
"Why? Do you need a reason? Why? Not everyone lives because they have a reason; they just live because they have to," Estoria looked at Faye, and his eyes blinked at her words.
"So I can just live for no reason too?" Faye asked, almost excited.
"I'm not sure, but I do know one thing for sure: if you keep living, even without a reason, you'll find a reason too one day," Estoria unconsciously patted Faye's head.
"That's why I'm also still breathing for no reason," Estoria thought, but she suddenly remembered that the words "you'll find a reason too one day if you keep on living" weren't exactly her own but someone else's.
"Since you named me, I'll listen to you, Estoria. I won't do anything until you tell me to," Faye looked like if he were a puppy, he would be wagging his tail happily in that moment.
"I'm glad to hear that," Estoria gave Faye a little smile when she suddenly remembered Asher.
"Faye, do you know how I can get to Asher?" Estoria asked Faye, who was holding onto her right hand with his left hand.
Faye had small hands compared to Estoria. He was also a short and frail kid who looked even younger than Asher. The thought of how such a small little human is an assassin crossed through Estoria's mind when Faye replied.
"Yes, I'll take you to him if you want."
Is he supposed to be this obedient to her? They weren't really allies; he worked for the same boss Asher worked for, meaning that this boss was far from a person who would let his assassins help her.
"Can you really do that? Won't the person you're working for become mad at you for helping me?" Estoria asked as Faye was about to cast a spell.
"What? I work for you now. Right?"
Hearing Faye's response caught Estoria off guard. What? He switched sides? Why because I named him? So many questions went through her mind when she realized something.
"What about the other person you were working for then?"
"He can do whatever he wants since he wouldn't name me even when I did everything he asked me for. It's his fault."
Faye was truly a kid whom Estoria had taken a liking to already.
"Alright, if you don't like it here, you can also work for me. I happen to be quite rich, or rather my family is, but I don't think they'll mind. Oh right, enough about that. I have to get back before they find out I'm missing. What time is it right now?"
"It's about to be dawn soon," Faye replied with his thumb in his mouth.
"I have to get back before sunrise. Let's get Asher quickly, Faye." Estoria looked at him sucking his right hand's thumb without a care in his mind.
"Faye, you shouldn't do that," Estoria took the thumb out of his mouth and saw that the thumb had a cut on it, blood peeking out of it.
"When did this happen?" She quickly tied her handkerchief around his thumb.
"I forgot about the knife in my pocket," Faye said, staring at his now wrapped thumb.
Was it when he reached for candies in his pocket? He shouldn't carry both in the same pocket. As Estoria was thinking, she remembered his bloody socks.
"Faye, what happened?" Estoria looked at his legs on which the blood was drying a little now.
"It's not fresh blood; don't worry about it," Faye smiled.
"Alright, enough distractions. Take me to Asher, please."
Faye started walking, dragging Estoria with his hand still holding onto her hand tightly.
"Here," he stopped in front of the door with a seven on it and pointed at the door.
"How can I open the door? I tried, but it didn't work," Estoria explained.
Faye stared at his hand holding onto Estoria's warm hand, seemingly not wanting to let go of her hand.
"I can open it," Faye hesitated.
"Then can you open it for me, please?" Estoria was also losing patience, thinking about the time.
Faye sadly let go of her hand and pressed both of his hands on the door, pushing the door open.
The door opened without any sounds whatsoever; it was also dark to see anything.
"After you," Faye stepped aside.
Estoria trusted Faye and stepped inside. As soon as she put a single step in the room, it suddenly lit up with two floating orbs.
As the room lit up, the surroundings became clear. It was empty, with Asher hanging in the center cuffed to the ceiling with thick chains. The chains were white and sparkling blue as if they contained electricity in them.
Asher's head was down; his clothes had dirt on them resembling shoe prints. Seeing Asher in that state, Estoria's mind went blank. She had an unexplainable rage in her eyes as she saw him so helpless for the first time.
Asher lifted his head seeing the room lit up. "What are you doing here? It hasn't even been 24 hours yet, and you already found me?" He asked dumbfounded.
Estoria moved her feet without a word, stepping closer to Asher.
"I'm sorry for leaving like that, okay? Please don't hit me!" He pleaded while turning his head to the side to hide himself.
Asher hadn't been this scared in many years, but seeing Estoria's eyes, chills ran down his body, and he quickly submitted as if his body sensed the danger unconsciously. Estoria not speaking only made it worse.
Estoria couldn't even see Asher's face; her eyes were fixated on something else. She grabbed the white chain with a strong grip on it.
Asher looked at her suddenly gripping the white chain on his left side and shouted, "DON'T TOUCH IT!"
Estoria, oblivious to his words, tightened her grip on the white chain, causing sparks to sparkle out, which had little to no effect on Estoria, but Asher seemed to have felt something as he closed his eyes in pain.
She let go of the chain, seeing his expression. Instead, she grabbed his hand shackles with both of her hands, pulling the shackle in opposite directions and breaking the shackle into bits flying in the air.
"How did you? These aren't meant to break this easily," Asher stood there in awe as Estoria moved over to the other arm and pulled it to pieces too, freeing Asher from the shackles.
Only after that, she gained some of her senses back and focused as she heard Asher speak.
"Wow, I knew you were suspicious. Were you hiding your powers?" Asher asked as he rubbed his red wrists.
Estoria replied back this time, "You lost weight since the last time I saw you."
"That's what's holding your thoughts? Who are you to worry about that? My mom? Oh, you are..." Asher quieted down obediently.
Faye hadn't stepped into the room and watched from the threshold, standing there unblinkingly with his slender figure like a doll without motion.
"Why would you come back if you had someone to worry for you?" Faye asked with his ominous emotionless face.
"You don't have to know that, and since when have you been staring at us from there creepily?" Asher wasn't scared of him, but even he found the little boy strangely eerie.
Estoria, having calmed down, explained, "Faye helped me find you."
"Faye? He's number five. Has he been deceiving you?" Asher asked confused.
"I also got a name from Estoria, like you!" Faye gave Asher his wynorrific smile.
"....You what?" Asher looked at Estoria for answers.
"It wasn't anything that grandiose. Stop giving me such stares. He wanted one, so I gave him one," Estoria said, observing the ceiling from where the white chains were coming.
"Yeah, sure, alright. It's nothing serious," Asher reassured himself.
"By the way, where are we?"
"You don't even know where you are? How did someone like you find this place?"
"Stop giving me more questions. We have to leave and get back home before everyone notices the both of us missing. I'll answer your inquiries later."
"This place isn't on the map. Its whereabouts are unknown. If I had to describe the place, it's like a ruined castle. You can't go outside, and you can't come inside unless the owner shows you the place by teleporting here," Asher saw the footprints on his clothes and started dusting them off.
"So how do we get out?" Estoria stared at the footprints, her anger coming back.
"Everyone here can teleport to the outside. You can do it too," Faye answered.
The teleportation spell can be used by mages to teleport to places. If they have been to a place before, they can easily teleport there again, but it was mana-consuming, and the distance depends on the mana of the person. Hence, although very useful, it's not used by many official mages.
"It's not something you can easily learn. Even Faye took a month to learn it," Asher said.
"How long did it take you?"
"A day."
"..."
"Boss has been alerted to your escape already, Asher," Faye stepped into the room, closing the door behind.
"I know we have to leave quickly, but why are you helping me? They won't let this go easily," Asher stared at Faye.
"They don't have to either because I am betraying them," Faye smiled brightly.
"Your not thinking of following me again, are you?" Asher said in a worried voice.
Faye didn't reply but just stood there smiling.
"Let's do it, the teleportation," Estoria spoke.
"I'm not sure if I can teleport us both back," Asher looked defeated.
"Don't worry about that. Just do your best. It's okay if you teleport by yourself too."
"What about you then?"
"I'm sure I'll find a way out somehow. Also, I can protect myself now."
Estoria breaking his shackles with her bare hands was enough proof for that statement.
"We are teleporting back together," Asher gave Estoria his hand to take, which she took quickly.
"What's wrong with your hand?" Asher noticed the dried blood on her knuckles.
Faye came closer to Estoria and took her other hand.
"I'll help," Faye still had the smile on his face.
Asher looked at him suspiciously, but he couldn't deny his help either.
A white light flashed the room, and they teleported back to the Stallions mansion.